


andante

by boldlygoingnowherefast



Category: The Adventure Zone (Podcast)
Genre: First Kiss, First Time, Fix-It, Fluff, Light Angst, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-29
Updated: 2019-08-29
Packaged: 2020-09-29 21:31:07
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,670
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20442842
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/boldlygoingnowherefast/pseuds/boldlygoingnowherefast
Summary: When Avi joined the Bureau of Balance, he had no way of anticipating how his life would change. But powerful relics, bubbles of time, and giant creatures that erased knowledge had nothing on falling in love. Avi hadn't prepared to fall in love.





	andante

**Author's Note:**

> This ship grabbed me by the arm and I'm trapped now. Rarepairs really get me going, let me tell you. You'll probably see more from me here.

Avi had taken a lot of odd jobs in his life, from helping repair steamboats on the Sword Coast to doing tune-ups on battle wagons outside of Goldcliff. Avi’s profession as an engineer had moved him from job to job quite frequently, but since Avi didn’t have any family he was close to, he didn’t really mind it. By the time he was 30, he had been a lot of places and seen a lot of things. 

None of this had prepared him for what his life would be like working for the Bureau of Balance. He had stumbled on a job with the Bureau quite accidentally while working on a city planning project for Rockport. There had been a tall woman lingering in the back of the room during their meeting, her attention rapt as Avi described his idea for support structures on a new line of buildings that would sit on the edge of town. After the meeting, she had approached him. 

She had been there to meet with the head engineer on the project but told Avi she was more impressed with Avi’s work. Avi had taken her job offer almost immediately. 

Firing cannons off the edge of a base on the moon and doing other odd, impossible projects as he was needed? It had sounded amazing to Avi, and for the most part, it was. His coworkers were cool, his compensation was decent, and the Director listened to his ideas regardless of how far fetched they sounded. He decided it was nice to no longer be working job to job, even if that meant his life had gotten much weirder. 

Avi really didn’t think much on the whole giant-mysterious-jellyfish thing or the fact that he was a member of a shadowy organization that was keeping the knowledge of literal _ wars _from the world below. Avi trusted the Director and their cause, and that was enough for him. 

Avi had been working there for three months and had seen the organization grow steadily in that time. There were new faces all the time; new guards, new technicians, new Regulators and Seekers. Avi was interested in everything that was happening around him and tried to meet as many new people as he could. When he had first joined, Killian had been one of the first ones to greet him, and Avi had been grateful for her friendliness. Joining a shadowy organization would be even weirder if people weren’t friendly. 

The cannons had not yet been perfected, and Avi’s main goal was to make them safer and more efficient. After working with them for a few months, Avi had a plan to optimize them. He spent a month scrawling notes and bouncing ideas off of the others that worked in the cannon bay with him. 

When he gave the Director his finished design, she smiled at him. “You will definitely be receiving a bonus for this one,” she said. “Perhaps even a promotion.” 

Avi beamed. 

Feeling accomplished and optimistic, he nearly bounced across the quad on his way back to his quarters and almost missed the sight of a bard making their way towards the elevator that led to where the giant jellyfish was kept. Avi slowed his pace. He couldn’t recall ever seeing a bard on the moonbase. The members of the BoB usually consisted of rogues, warriors, and wizards. This bard was dressed in bard finery and had a violin strapped to their back, but sure enough, there was a bracer affixed to their arm. 

Avi made his way over to them, and they looked up when they noticed him. 

“Hey! Are you new here?” Avi asked. 

The bard had dark curls that framed his face, dark skin, and Avi could tell from the ears just barely poking out from his hair that he was a half-elf. 

“I’ve been here almost four weeks now,” the bard responded, and Avi was surprised by how downcast his voice was. “I haven’t seen you around.” 

Avi scratched the back of his neck, struck weirdly off-balance by this bard. “I’ve been holed away working for a while, I—” He held out his hand. “I’m Avi. I work in the cannon bay and do other engineering projects for the Director. I’ve been trying to greet everyone new around here. I’m sorry I missed you.” 

The bard, Avi realized belatedly, had an armful of scrolls, which he had to shift awkwardly before shaking Avi’s hand. “I’m Johann. I’m a bard.”

Avi didn’t comment on the fact that it was pretty obvious he was a bard and gave Johann a friendly smile. “Do you provide entertainment around here, or…?”

Johann’s eyes flickered sideways and then back to Avi. “I write compositions for the Voidfish. It feeds on information, and the Director figured the easiest way to give it information that wouldn’t impact the world below would be to feed it original compositions.”

“The Voidfish?” 

“The giant jellyfish in the basement.”

“Oh! Right. That’s a clever idea,” Avi replied. “How are you liking it here so far?” 

Johann shrugged and had to shift the scrolls in his arms again to keep from dropping them. “The Voidfish seems to appreciate what I feed it, but...” He sighed. “I was going to be world-renowned, you know. I’m like the best violinist ever, and no one will hear my music, now.”

Avi didn’t know what to do when faced with this sudden moroseness. “Did the Director recruit you?”

“Yeah. I was playing for a small venue in Neverwinter, and she got wind of it. Said she needed a good composer and that I would be paid well. That was enough for me, I guess, even with all the warnings about being erased.” He shifted on his feet. “I should probably get going. I have to finish a composition today.”

“It was nice meeting you,” Avi said. 

“You too,” Johann replied, and Avi couldn’t tell if he meant it. 

The thing about super-secret moonbases is that they’re not overly large, and that meant you tended to run into everyone at some point, regardless of what schedule you kept. Over the next few weeks, Avi kept seeing Johann in passing. The bard usually had an armful of scrolls and a gloomy expression on his face, but Avi made a point to smile and greet him every time. 

One afternoon, Avi was sitting alone at a table in the cafeteria with a sad plate of spaghetti. Killian had just been called away by the Director, leaving Avi to himself as he contemplated getting up to retrieve another cookie. He really needed to cut back on the sweets. 

“Can I sit here?”

Avi glanced up and was greeted by the sight of Johann standing across the table from him holding a tray of food. 

“Sure thing.”

Johann took the seat across from him, and Avi tried to recall ever seeing him in the cafeteria before. Avi realized the only times he had ever seen Johann here were when he was in line for food, after which he always made a quick exit. 

Avi watched in curiosity as Johann picked a breadstick off his tray and took a large bite. He didn’t seem to be preparing to start any conversation, which was a bit weird. 

“You don’t normally eat in the cafeteria,” Avi started. “At least, I’ve never seen you eating here.” 

“I usually take my lunch back to my desk.” He grimaced. “The Director told me I was required to take a lunch break anywhere but the Voidfish chambers. So. Here I am.” 

Avi smiled in what he hoped was an encouraging manner. “Well, my table is always open to you if you want to sit here.”

The corner of Johann’s mouth quirked upwards. “Thanks.” 

Avi had a few more bites of the spaghetti before deciding it was a lost cause and setting his fork down. He glanced over to the front of the cafeteria and watched Robbie try to take extra breadsticks, only to be swatted away by the tough gnomish woman that worked the lunch line. 

“Have you heard the news?”

Avi turned back to see Johann looking at him while he chewed. 

“No?”

“Magic Brian. The Director sent him out two weeks ago to collect a relic. He’s gone AWOL.” 

Avi felt his eyes widen in shock. “Really?” Avi hadn’t come into much contact with Brian. The drow had kept to himself, for the most part, and Avi had gotten a weird feeling from him the few times he had interacted with him. Avi had manned the cannon to send him down to Phandolin, but that was the extent of Avi’s interactions with him. 

“Yeah man, it’s scary stuff. The Director is sending down a Regulator. This is the third Reclaimer to go rogue, but the first since I’ve been here.”

That was probably why Killian had been summoned to the Director’s office. 

“The other two were before my time, too. God, will we imprison him here?” Avi liked the Bureau, but the thought of them putting a man in a cell up here turned Avi’s stomach. 

“If they can get him here without killing him, yeah. Otherwise, I think the dude’s gone-zo.”

Avi winced. “If Killian has anything to do with it, yeah.”

“You know what happens when he dies, right?” Johann asked. 

His name would be fed to the Voidfish, and everyone down below would forget him. 

“Yeah.”

Johann shook his head. “It’s a bummer if you ask me.”

Avi fiddled with a napkin on the edge of his tray as he got his words in order. “All of us were given a choice when we signed up. We all chose to be here. We’re risking a lot to make the world safe, but it’s a risk we all willingly took. Brian knew what he was doing when he joined. And he definitely knew there was a chance that he wouldn’t be able to resist the thrall of the artifacts.”

Johann looked away, and Avi wondered if he had been too insistent. He didn’t want to scare Johann off, but he also didn’t want the bard to ruminate on Brian’s fate like it was something they could have prevented. It wasn’t.

Johann sighed. “You’re probably right.” He pinched the bridge of his nose. “I thought it would be okay working here, and for the most part it really is a decent gig, but I can’t stop thinking about people being erased from everyone’s memory. It’s always on my mind, and it’s awful.” 

“How often are you alone with the Voidfish?”

Johann looked at him with furrowed brows. “I mean, it’s kinda my _ job _, so all the time.” 

“I think you’re spending too much time in there by yourself. Your job is to write compositions for it, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Then why don’t you do some of that writing out here?” Avi gestured to the quad. “It might help to get the whole forgetting business off your mind for a little while. Surround yourself with people who _ won’t _forget.” 

Johann stared out towards the quad in consideration. “It does get kinda lonely down there.” 

“Most of the people I’ve met here at the Bureau are pretty great, and I know that they’re most of the reason I’ve been enjoying my time here. Sure, my job is pretty cool, _ Launch Specialist _that sounds awesome, but without the people I work with, I wouldn’t be enjoying myself half as much.” He smiled. “And if you ever wanna hang, just let me know! No one should be spending all their time alone with a weird jellyfish. That’ll do things to you.”

Johann had stopped chewing and was looking at him in mild surprise. “Thank you.”

Avi grinned. “No problem at all, my man.”

Over the next two weeks, Johann joined Avi at lunch nearly every day. Killian was still on her mission to bring in Magic Brian, and Avi’s other friends didn’t take the same lunch break he did, which meant Avi and Johann had the table to themselves. Avi was beginning to learn Johann’s weird sense of humor, and soon their conversations strayed from normal work talk to stories from before they worked for the BoB.

“The guy led me to the inn I’d be staying the night before the performance, and I am not even joking, the rooms didn’t even have beds in them. It was just a fucking matt in a corner of the empty room.” 

Avi let out a startled bark of laughter. “Did you leave?”

“Yeah dude, I’m a bard not a _ dog. _ Gave the man his money back and immediately skipped town. That place was a hellhole. It was rough-going for a little while after that, but I don’t regret not taking that job.”

Avi shook his head. “I’ve been in some bad places, but I don’t think I’ve ever been expected to sleep on the floor.”

“Bardic work can be—well, let’s just say this place is much nicer than any place I’ve stayed for work in a long time.”

“It’s unfair how badly people treat bards!” Avi said, gesturing with his fork. “It takes a lot of skill to be good at an instrument, let alone channel spells while you do it, and people think they can just… treat you like that.” 

Johann shrugged. “That part of my life is behind me, now. As depressed as this job sometimes makes me, it’s nothing like what I was doing before.” He looked away from Avi and down into his soup. “I never really had friends before either, so that’s neat.” 

“I had a lot of temporary friends,” Avi said. “I moved around so much that I never really got close to anyone. This is the first time I’ve felt like my friendships are going to last.”

Johann gave him a small smile. “Good to know we agree.”

When Killian returned to base, she had three men in tow—a dwarf, a burly human, and a high elf. Avi watched them stumble out of the transportation sphere and offered them a drink from his flask when they looked like they were having a tough time. They turned out to be pretty rude, and a bit stupid if Avi was going to be honest, but if Killian had brought them here with her, they would likely be his new coworkers, so he did his best to keep the conversation friendly. 

He watched them walk away with Killian and pocketed his flask. 

Later, when he was cleaning up his work for the day, Johann showed up in the cannon bay, which was a first. 

“Johann!” Avi said, straightening from his crouch near the base of the cannon. “What brings you to my humble abode?”

“Have you met the new Reclaimers?”

“New Reclaimers?” Avi tilted his head. “The three weird dudes who showed up a few hours ago?”

“Yes. They brought in a fucking relic after defeating Magic Brian, and apparently they just passed the Test of Initiation.” 

“Shit.”

“They’re for real, and to make matters worse, they’re fucking _ assholes.” _

Avi hadn’t noticed it before, but now he could see how tense Johann was, and how he kept crossing and uncrossing his arms. “Did you run into them or something?”

“In the elevator down to the Voidfish. It’s like I was a joke to them.”

Avi grimaced. “It’s probably not personal. They were rude to me too.” He set the rag he had been using to wipe the glass of the transportation sphere down on the workbench. “I’m done here if you want to get a drink or something? You seem like you could use one and I can always use a drink.”

Johann seemed momentarily caught off guard, but after a few seconds, he blinked and said, “Sure.”

They left the cannon bay and made their way across the quad to the moonbase’s one bar that had opened not too long ago. It seemed that the Director was trying to make the place more comfortable, considering most people didn’t leave very often and a bar, in Avi’s opinion, was a great start. He was eager to see what else she brought to the base. Maybe a Fantasy Gold’s Gym. 

Avi led them to a table in the corner. It wasn’t crowded, but Avi could tell that Johann’s patience was thin, and he didn’t want to encourage too much conversation from the other Bureau members that were here. 

The bartender, a Halfling named Cal who Avi hadn’t seen anywhere but here, took their drink orders and came back with them quickly. Avi took a sip of his bourbon and ginger and sighed. 

“What did those three do that got you so pissed off?” Avi asked, watching as Johann took a large gulp of his own drink. 

“Magnus fucking tickled me.” 

Avi coughed, and then he spent a few moments coughing harder as his drink caught in his lungs.

“He did _ what? _”

“I stepped into the elevator with them, said like two sentences, and then Magnus just reached out and put his fingers in my ribs. And he kept doing it, too.” 

Avi had been right about them being weirdos. “What planet are those guys even from? That’s not right.”

Johann sighed heavily. “They resisted the thrall of the artifact easily, apparently. They’re exactly the type the Director has been looking for, so I guess I’m just going to have to get used to them.” He tugged on the edge of one of his sleeves and was silent for a long moment. “Also, I fed Magic Brian’s information to the Voidfish.”

Avi rubbed the back of his neck. “It’s an awful reminder, isn’t it? That this job is dangerous and the stakes are high.” 

“You could say that again.”

“Well, I have to say, the new Reclaimers might just be stupid enough to live through this whole thing. I bet you ten GP they help us bring in the rest of the artifacts. There’s something about them.” 

“As long as they’re doing it_ far _ away from me.” 

The new Reclaimers became a regular part of the BoB, and even though they were strange and a bit difficult to talk to, Avi discovered that they were genuinely good people beneath all their bullshit. Avi could feel how the general mood around the Bureau had shifted for the better, now that it seemed like retrieving all the relics was a possibility and not just a distant goal. Taako, Magnus, and Merle had only been members of the Bureau for three months, and they had already brought in two relics. 

By the time the Summer Solstice came around, a break was well-deserved. Avi was certainly looking forward to the chance to relax, eat some garbage, and drink in the summer weather. He had helped with the set up in the days leading up to the festival, so he had the whole day of the festival off, and he was pretty thrilled about it. 

After a last-minute debate on whether he should dress as a fantasy skateboarder or a fantasy biker, he yanked on his leather jacket, tied a bandana around his forehead, and made a late entrance to the festival that was already in full swing by the time he showed up. 

He was so enthralled by the rows of booths and the smell of fried food that it took him a minute to realize there was violin music floating in the warm air. 

He turned his attention to where the music was coming from and saw Johann standing under a tent that was set up to amplify his music and provide a dance floor. There was a small spotlight on him, and he was standing on a riser that gave him a little bit of elevation over the crowd. Avi realized then, in mild surprise, that this was the first time he had heard Johann play. 

Johann hadn’t been lying about how good he was. The song he was playing was a little bit somber for the occasion, but it was gorgeous, and the way he moved with the music was enchanting. His fingers were quick and careful on the strings, and the upper half of his body swayed with the melody he wove. It was as much a pleasure to watch him play as it was to hear his music. 

“Avi! I like your costume.”

Avi jolted out of his trance and looked over to see Killian smiling at him. She glanced over at Johann and then back at Avi and her smile turned into something more knowing. “Got your eye on something?”

Avi cleared his throat and hastily changed the subject. “Who are you dressed as?” 

“I’m Jess the Beheader!”

Avi could see it now: the giant ax, the leather armor. “Ah, cool. Good costume.” He was horribly distracted and more than a bit embarrassed, and his goal was to get to the open bar as quickly as possible. 

“Alright, dude, I’m gonna let you get back to whatever it is you got going on,” Killian said and clapped him on the shoulder with a sympathetic look in her eye. “Good luck.” She turned around and headed towards where Carey was standing in front of a food cart with Boyland. 

Avi hurried to the bar and ordered the biggest beer they sold. Robbie winked at him as he handed it over, and Avi had no idea how to react, but he was grateful for the drink. As he took a few healthy gulps, he glanced back over to the music tent where Johann was bowing out a much jauntier piece than before. This was not good at all. The last thing Johann needed was for Avi to get a big stupid crush on him and make things weird. And a big stupid crush was also the last thing _ Avi _needed. All around a terrible idea, really, so it was best for Avi to stomp on it now before it got any worse. 

He spent the rest of the festival in mild discomfort, even as he mingled with his friends and ate carnival food. There was a warm buzzing in his stomach that persisted, even after he promised himself he wouldn’t do this, and it was putting him in a weird mood. 

Ten minutes before the eclipse, Johann hopped off his riser, tucked his violin back in its case, and wandered over to where Avi was watching the Reclaimer trio cheat at a carnival game. 

“Hey, Avi.”

Avi shot what he hoped was a normal grin at Johann. “Hey there! The music was great. Are you done for the evening?”

“Yeah. The Director wanted me to be able to enjoy the eclipse.” He accepted the eclipse glasses that Leon handed to him and passed a pair to Avi. “Eclipses are cool, I guess. It’s nice to not have to play for the whole event.” The corner of his mouth quirked up. “I like your costume, by the way. Are you a specific biker, or just the general _ idea _of bikers?”

“No, no one specific. Where’s your costume?”

Johann touched his mouth and frowned. “My fake mustache fell off.”

“Who were you supposed to be?”

“I was supposed to be me, but with a mustache.”

Avi let out a startled bark of laughter and wished he had seen Johann wearing the fake mustache. 

The Director’s voice piped through an amplifying spell, and a hush fell over the crowd as she announced that the eclipse would be happening in a few minutes. 

“You know, one Summer Solstice when I was like ten, my mom told me not to look at the eclipse directly, and I did it anyway because I was a—”

Avi was not able to finish his story, because as the sun and moon began to align, a horrifying sound came from every direction, pushing in on them with what felt like a metric ton of pressure. Avi’s vision went black. 

When Avi’s awareness came back to him, his head was spinning and he was lying flat on his back on the grass. “What the fuck?” he groaned. 

Johann was sitting up next to him, adjusting his hat on his head and looking frazzled. When he saw Avi struggling to sit up, he reached over and gripped Avi’s arm to help him. 

Avi pressed a hand to his head, too dizzy to deal with Johann’s proximity and the warmth of his hand on Avi’s arm. 

Merle walked up to them. “You guys okay over here?”

“What the hell was that?” Avi asked. 

“We don’t know,” Merle replied with a shrug of his small shoulders. “Magnus thought it might have been bad dick, but we didn’t _ all _eat dick.” 

Avi stared at his back as he wandered over to the next group of Bureau members sprawled on the grass. 

“That was an awful noise,” Johann said, finally dropping his hand from Avi’s arm. “It was like every instrument ever invented in the world was playing different notes all at once.” 

“The Reclaimers are sure looking perky,” Avi commented, watching them follow a shaken Director towards her office. 

“I regained consciousness quicker than everyone else,” Johann said. “And they were standing. I don’t think they passed out.” 

“Weird. They’re always so _ weird. _” He let out a heavy sigh. “I think I’m going to go to my room and sleep off this nasty pseudo-hangover.” 

“Sounds like a good idea,” Johann replied. He clambered to his feet and offered Avi a hand. Avi took it and stumbled dizzily to his feet, grateful for Johann’s steadying grip on his arm. The noise had hit him a lot harder than it had hit Johann, evidently. 

“Sure you can make it back alright?” Johann asked. Had his eyes always been this soft?

“I’ll be okay, but thank you, Johann. I’ll see you around.” 

“Sure thing, Avi.” 

As Avi turned and headed back to his room, he knew that he was _ definitely _in trouble, and it had nothing to do with mysterious concussive noises that hit during solar eclipses. 

Avi spent the next few weeks trying desperately not to think too much about Johann. They still met for lunch, and Avi was still as friendly with him as he usually was, but his goal was to limit all time spent thinking about Johann to when he was face-to-face with him or talking about him to someone else. 

It was not going very well. Avi was a big enough man to admit that to himself. Still, he prided himself on how normal he was acting regardless of what was going on with his stupid feelings. 

When Avi heard that the Reclaimers were going to participate in an illegal battlewagon race to obtain their third relic, he knew he had to organize a watch party. It was too good to pass up. The Director gave him the okay to hack into the broadcast systems on the side of the racetrack, and with Leon’s help, Avi figured out how to jerry-rig it to project on the wall of the cafeteria. 

Apparently, most of the BoB was also interested in the prospect of a battlewagon race, because the turnout was bigger than Avi had expected. 

“I can’t believe these three and their ability to get into the coolest and most dangerous situations,” Killian said with a shake of her head as they watched the crates of battlewagons line up on the start line. “A battlewagon race? How in the hell?”

“Perks of being able to resist the pull of the relics?” Avi offered.

“It’s unfair, is what it is,” Killian responded, but she was grinning as the starting horn sounded and the wagons launched out of the crates in a brutal first punch of speed. 

“Whoa, this is pretty violent,” Carey said as she walked up to stand by Killian. “Five wagons down already?”

“Don’t even lie, you would kill to be out there with them,” Killian replied, smiling down at Carey. 

“I mean, yeah. It’s friggin' awesome.” 

Avi saw movement out of the corner of his eye and turned to see Johann rounding one of the tables and sitting down on the bench seat to Avi’s left, just far enough away that all Avi could really do was give him a small wave. Johann nodded in response and turned his attention to the race. 

The race was one of the most thrilling things Avi had ever seen in his life. Where else would you get spectral unicorns, tanks in the shape of sharks, and bugbears on motorcycles?

When Taako crossed the finish line first, the room erupted in raucous cheering. At this moment, it didn’t matter to anyone in that room that the relic hadn’t been retrieved yet. Taako, Merle, and Magnus were battlewagon champions, and there was nothing cooler. 

Avi was swept into a hug by an ecstatic Killian and a laugh bubbled out of his mouth as she pulled him off his feet for a moment before setting him back down and punching her fists in the air in celebration. 

When Avi looked over at Johann, Johann had a full-blown _ smile _on his face. He had stood up at some point, likely when Taako had first crossed the finish line, and when he made eye contact with Avi, his smile grew. “That was fucking amazing.” 

Avi laughed. “It sure was.” 

It was late, nearing midnight, when a sharp rap sounded at Avi’s door. He wasn’t in bed yet, but he was in his pajamas, scrawling some quick notes at his desk. When he opened the door, he was greeted by the sight of a weary Johann. 

Johann’s eyes flickered down to Avi’s sweatpants and t-shirt combo and he faltered. “Uh, sorry. I can come back another time.”

“No, I wasn’t sleeping. What is it?”

Johann shifted his weight on his feet and rubbed a hand over the back of his neck. He had taken his hat off and was holding it tightly in one hand. “Do you have a moment to talk?”

“Of course.” Avi stepped back so Johann could enter. He offered Johann his desk chair and perched on the side of his bed across from him. “What’s up?”

Johann sat down in the chair. “The Voidfish sang today. It’s never done that before.” 

“Shit, really?”

“Seven notes, repeated again and again. It interrupted Lucas being a dick to me to sing those notes.”

Avi wrinkled his nose. No one at the Bureau really liked Lucas, save perhaps the Director. “Do you know why?”

“I…” He trailed off. “Honestly, I think it’s a message, but every time I get close to its meaning, it slips away from me.” He shook his head in frustration. “I’ve been trying to decode it all day, but I’ve been getting nowhere. I’m turning myself in circles.” 

“Maybe you should sleep on it,” Avi offered. “The answer might come to you after you rest.”

“I just don’t understand why it’s so difficult. Seven notes, written out. Their letters form a message. But the message—” He grimaced. “God, my head fucking hurts.” 

“Hey.” Avi leaned forward and put his hand on Johann’s wrist. “You should really take a break. You’re going to hurt yourself.” 

Johann looked up at him, and his frustrated expression smoothed into one of exhaustion. “I came here because I needed to convince myself I wasn’t losing my mind, and you’re always good at talking to me.”

“If you want me to, I can look at your notes tomorrow? Maybe a fresh perspective would help? But if you think there’s something weird going on, I’m willing to bet there _ is _something weird going on. You know the Voidfish better than anyone, and I think you should trust your intuition.”

“Thank you, Avi, really.” 

“Of course.” 

Johann’s mouth turned up at the corner, and Avi realized he hadn’t taken his hand off Johann’s wrist. He pulled back and watched the smile that was on Johann’s mouth dip slightly. He resisted the urge to jump off the bed and start pacing and make an even bigger fool of himself. “Can I get you a drink or something? You came all the way here, and it’s the least I could do.”

Johann shook his head. “I think I’m going to head to bed, actually. But thank you. I’m feeling much better than I was.”

“I’m glad you came to me.”

Avi watched as Johann left his room, and as soon as the door clicked shut behind him, Avi sprawled backward on his bed and groaned. 

Avi spent the next few days thinking about Johann’s face when Avi had placed his hand on his wrist. Avi wanted desperately to know what would have happened had he kept it there, had he encouraged Johann to stay a little longer.

With Candlenights quickly approaching, there was not a lot of work to be done around the Bureau. The holiday cheer was increasing, and Avi was slowly pulled from his sullen introspection by happy coworkers and the prospect of holiday parties to come. He had a whole week and a half off work starting that weekend, and now that he was thinking about it, he realized how much he needed it.

Magnus caught up to him when he was walking across the green to lunch on his last day of work before vacation. “Avi!”

“What’s up, Magnus?”

“The Reclaimers are hosting a Candlenights party on Saturday evening in our suite. You’re invited!”

Avi grinned. “Should I bring anything?”

“Nope. We’re all set. We’ll be doing a gift exchange, so you might want to prepare for that if you want to get anyone anything.”

Avi had already started getting gifts together for his friends, so he just smiled. “Sounds great. Thanks, Magnus.”

When Avi showed up to the party, he and Killian had already been drinking for two hours, and he was definitely feeling it more than Killian was by the time they showed up at the party. Luckily, he hadn’t pushed himself past pleasantly buzzed into smashed yet, so the evening was looking up.

Magnus opened the door for them with a bright grin. “Happy Candlenights! Come on in.”

The party was already underway as Avi stepped inside, careful to keep his bag of gifts from bumping against the doorframe. He set the bag under the Candlenights bush and turned to survey the room. There was a table on the far side laden with all sorts of Candlenights favorites, with a large bucket of eggnog sat at the end of it. Judging by the level of the liquid in the bowl, people had already been enjoying themselves. It seemed that most of the upper levels of the Bureau were here, including the Director, which was a bit of a shock. She wasn’t usually one for casual mingling. He spotted that new kid Angus, who had already pulled Killian into a cheerful conversation.

A violin tune started, and Avi’s gaze tracked it to the other side of the room where Johann was standing. He had been between tunes when Avi walked in, which was why Avi was just noticing him. When Johann glanced over towards him Avi gave him a cheerful wave, which Johann couldn’t return, but his small smile was enough for Avi.

Avi made his way through the crowd to where Killian and Angus were standing and caught the tail end of a conversation about the benefits of using a crossbow to kill someone.

“But, ma’am, it’s very easy to track someone based on the size and manufacturing style of a crossbow bolt. You wouldn’t get away with anything!”

“Who says I’m trying to get away with anything?” Killian replied, crossing her arms. “I don’t exactly need to go for stealth when I’m stopping someone from using a relic.”

“This is a hypothetical situation!”

“Either way,” Killian replied, sticking her chin out. Avi laughed.

“Alright everyone!” came Magnus’ booming voice, and the music came to a gentle end. “It’s time to exchange gifts!”

The brandy that Avi brought for everyone went over well, and even though his interaction with the Reclaimers went about as terribly as it usually did, he was in too good a mood and had just enough of a buzz going that it didn’t bother him. And the macaron _ was _good.

“Hey.” Johann joined Avi by the Candlenights bush.

“Hey, Johann! Happy Candlenights.” Avi had considered getting Johann something special for Candlenights, but he also didn’t want to make it weird when he had given everyone else brandy. He compromised by bottling a flask of the fancier honey brandy that his family usually reserved for themselves. He handed Johann the flask. “I managed to get ahold of my family’s brew of honey brandy. None of you guys here have had it, but it’s my personal favorite. For special occasions.”

“Wow, cool. Thank you, Avi.” Johann looked shifty. “I, uh.”

Avi was expecting Johann to say he had forgotten to bring Avi a gift, which was fine really. Avi had never been great with receiving gifts, but instead, Johann pulled a box from his pocket and handed it to Avi with a pinched expression on his face.

“It’s a music box. But it’s not--it’s not the song I gave everyone else, which I realize now might be a little weird.”

Avi looked up from the pretty carved box and at Johann’s growing discomfort. “It’s a different song?”

“It’s another of my original compositions, but this one is like, a lot more personal than the one I gave everyone else? I’m not giving it to the Voidfish, and I haven’t shared it with anyone, but I thought you might like it. I wanted to share it with you.”

Avi held the little box close to his chest. “Johann, that’s—” He took a deep breath, trying to calm the way his heart was beating in his throat. “That’s very sweet of you. It means a lot to me that you’d trust me with this. I’ll listen to it when I’m alone, yeah?”

Johann nodded, and some of his nervousness melted away. Avi realized now that his own brandy gift seemed impersonal and a bit lame, but Johann didn’t seem bothered by it. In fact, the care with which Avi was handling the little music box seemed to be brightening Johann’s spirits considerably, and Avi felt warmed by it.

“I’m really eager to listen to this now,” Avi said. “This party seems to be winding down, and if you’re done for the evening, we could go—”

He was interrupted by the Director’s urgent voice, and they both looked over to see her having an angry conversation with someone over her stone of far speech. The partied lulled considerably as the conversation continued.

“Wonder what that’s all about,” Avi said with a frown.

She scrawled something in her notebook, ripped it out, and then looked over at Avi. Avi’s heart sank as she made a beeline for him. “Move the headquarters to these coordinates _ right now. _We’re in a hurry,” she said, handing him the scrap of notebook paper.

“These coordinates are south of here,” he said with a frown.

“Yes?”

“The moon typically doesn’t move south,” Avi replied. 

“Just do it,” the Director snapped and stalked off to go have a harried conversation with the Reclaimers.

“That was a little rude,” Johann said.

“It’s alright. It sounds like whatever is going on is bad. I guess I gotta go,” he said, deflating.

“I’ll catch up with you tomorrow?” Johann asked. “You can listen to the song and tell me what you think.”

Avi smiled. “Sounds great.” As he adjusted the headquarters to the coordinates the Director had given him, all he could think about was the small box sitting in his pocket. 

Avi had been expecting to go home after that, but the rest of the night was spent readying the emergency canoes to get the Reclaimers down to Lucas’ lab, and then waiting for them to return from what seemed to Avi to be a terrifying mission full of peril and pink crystal.

He leaned against one of the workbenches and stared across the silent cannon bay. He knew he was the best at this job, and he normally would have been perfectly content to stand watch while world-saving stuff happened below him, but he wanted to regain whatever it was in that moment that had been lost when the Director interrupted him. He wanted to know if Johann would have said yes to his invitation to listen to the song together.

Avi realized that he was completely alone in the cannon bay, and so with a reverent touch, he pulled the box from his pocket. When he turned the dial, the sweet music-box sound drifted out into the quiet air.

It was a cheerful tune, but it was being supported by a base of somber undertones. The two contrasting lines wove together effortlessly, and Avi didn’t know much about music, but there was something about this piece that tugged deep in Avi’s chest. By the time it drifted to a close, Avi had to shake himself out of the daze it had put him in. After a few moments to pull himself together, Avi turned the dial to start the song over.

He wanted to know what Johann was thinking when he composed this, and why he had chosen Avi to share it with. Being stuck in this cannon bay right now, unable to go seek out the bard and ask his questions, was one of the most frustrating feelings Avi had experienced in a long time.

By the time the Reclaimers had crash-landed the weird elevator thing on the quad, Avi had listened to the song at least ten more times. When he finally pulled himself to his room after he was dismissed, he fell asleep as soon as his head touched the pillow, music box grasped loosely in his hand.

Avi woke late the next day, feeling groggy but not as terribly as he could have been, considering the night he had. He set the music box gently on his nightstand and plodded through his morning routine, deciding that a late breakfast in the cafeteria was the best course of action. He debated contacting Johann. Avi wanted to see him more than anything after hearing that song, but he was also terrified, both of his own feelings and of what Johann would have to say.

In the end, it was Johann who found him. Avi was just heading out of the cafeteria after a mildly disappointing breakfast, when Johann spotted him across the quad, ended his conversation with Taako, and met Avi where he had stopped to wait for him.

“Morning,” Johann said. “How was the whole world-saving thing last night?”

“It’s never that fun from our end, but I will say the whole elevator mech-thing was just weird enough to be interesting.”

“So that’s what Taako was trying to complain about. Thank you for appearing, by the way. I was worried about getting out of that conversation. I’m not even sure the guy likes me, but he’ll complain to anyone. So. Thanks.”

Avi laughed. “Anything for you.” He felt a blush immediately staining his cheeks. “Uh.”

Johann’s eyes went wide, and he shifted on his feet. “Do you want to—did you get a chance to listen to the song?”

“Yes, last night when I was by myself in the cannon bay. Johann, it—”

“Can we go somewhere that’s not the middle of the quad?” Johann asked, cutting him off.

“Yeah, good idea.”

Johann followed Avi to his quarters, and when Avi closed the door behind them, he could feel his heartbeat race. Like that first night Johann showed up to his quarters for a steadying conversation, Avi took a seat on his bed. This time, though, he left enough room next to him, and when Johann sat down, it was next to Avi on the bed. Avi’s stomach swooped.

“It felt wrong talking about my song outside like that. Sorry if I made it weird.”

Avi tucked his right leg up on the bed so he could turn and face Johann. “You didn’t make it weird.”

“Okay. Good.” He glanced at the music box on the nightstand. “You listened to it?”

Avi rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. “More than a few times, yeah. Johann, it’s beautiful. Like, I don’t know a ton about music, but that composition is amazing. Thank you for sharing it with me. I really don’t know how to thank you.”

“You don’t have to thank me. I wanted you to hear it.”

“Can you tell me about it? Does it have a specific meaning? I apologize if I’m being dense and the meaning is easy to pick out, but I’ve always been really bad at that sort of thing.”

“This is going to sound stupid, but I just.” He closed his eyes and let out a breath of air. Avi wanted to reach out to him, but he was worried it would interrupt whatever he was going to say.

“You treat me differently than everyone else does. At first, it really threw me off, and I wasn’t sure how to interact with you, but after a while, I realized you were seeing me for more than just a sad bard who hates his job. You took the time to listen to my regrets and my worries, and you didn’t brush me off. You gave me helpful advice. You seemed to _ care _.”

“I do care,” Avi replied, and he was amazed that his voice came out steady and not choked with the emotion he was feeling.

“I wrote this song because I was having trouble coming to that conclusion, and I guess it helped me figure it out.”

“Johann…”

“I’m not used to this sort of thing. People don’t try to get close to me very often. You’re the first person I _ want _to let close, and honestly, that terrifies me.”

Finally, Avi allowed himself to reach out, and he placed a hand on Johann’s upper arm. His heart was beating madly in his chest, and his face was warm, and he wondered if Johann could tell. “You’re not the only one who’s scared. I’m scared too, but I don’t think that’s a bad thing.”

Johann’s gaze dropped to his mouth.

Avi took a steadying breath and hoped he wasn’t misreading the situation. “Johann, would it be okay if I kissed you?”

Johann nodded once, jerkily, and when Avi leaned in, his eyes slid shut.

The kiss was soft and warm, and when Avi lifted his other hand to slip gently beneath Johann’s curls and rest on his jaw, Johann made a low noise and splayed his hands on Avi’s back.

Johann pulled back enough to look at Avi, and his dazed expression matched the way Avi was feeling.

“I don’t want to hurt you, Avi. I’m unhappy and I get super frustrated _ all the time _. I spend days on end working on one piece of music without talking to anyone. I don’t want to promise you something that I can’t follow through on.”

Avi still had his hand on Johann’s jaw, and when he brushed his thumb over the soft skin there, Johann’s eyelids fluttered.

“Relationships aren’t always easy, but this is worth it,” Avi replied. “And I don’t want some version of you I’ve built up in my head that’s magically happy all the time. I want _ you _.”

“Ugh. That’s painfully romantic.” 

“You wrote a piece of music to show me how you feel about me.”

“I’m a bard. That’s what we do.” 

This time, Johann was the one who closed the distance between them, and where their first kiss had been sweet, this one was insistent and full of heat. Johann’s hands tightened on Avi’s back and pulled him in closer, and Avi took the hint, moving forward until the leg he had curled under him was pressing up against Johann’s thigh.

Avi slid his hand back from Johann’s jaw, over his gently pointed ear, and into his hair. 

Avi had no idea how much time had passed when they finally pulled apart again. They were both breathing heavily, and Avi knew he probably had a dumbstruck expression on his face, but he couldn’t help it. Johann’s hat had fallen off his head at some point, lying forgotten on the bed beside him. Avi was nearly in Johann’s lap at this point. 

Avi’s stone of farspeech buzzed. “Avi, this is the Director speaking. Could you meet me in my office?”

He rested his forehead against Johann’s and let out a heavy sigh. 

“It’s like she can tell or something,” Johann replied, tugging playfully on the collar of Avi’s jacket. “Go see what she wants. I have to go check on the Voidfish anyway.”

Avi gave him one last lingering kiss. “Okay.” 

The bubble was one of the weirdest things Avi had ever tried to crack. The Director was tasking him with figuring out how to get the Reclaimers through it so they could collect the artifact that was causing it. 

“This is just like the Fantasy Simpsons movie,” he had said with a smile as she pulled up a small projection of it in her office. 

“This particular bubble is not made of glass,” she replied. “It’s made of _ time.” _

Avi enjoyed a good puzzle, and the Director seemed to think he was capable of cracking this one, so he poured his full effort into it. The Director hadn’t explicitly told him to, but there was an unspoken understanding that he was to drop all his other duties until he figured this out. 

After a few days of studying schematics on the base and pulling together supplies, Avi knew it was time for him to camp near the bubble. 

“I have no idea how long I’ll be gone, but I want to stay down there until I figure out how to get the Reclaimers through it.” 

“Isn’t it like a desert down there?” Johann asked. There was a frown on his face as he pushed his half-eaten rice around on his plate. 

“Yeah. I’ll be okay. I’m packing a refilling water canteen, and the Bureau can send a sphere for me at any time.” 

Johann sighed. “Of everyone here, you’re probably the one most likely to find a solution for the magic bubble thing, but I’m not thrilled you’re going to be camping down there alone.”

“Give me your stone of farspeech,” Avi said, holding out his hand. 

Johann fished in his pocket and handed it to Avi. Avi tapped them together and watched as their colors aligned. 

“Now I can bother you whenever I get lonely,” Avi said with a grin. 

Johann took his stone back, and his frown faded. “You better.” 

It was tough work. The sun was nearly unbearable for a good portion of the day, and if it weren’t for his enchanted tent keeping the air inside cool, he probably would have high-tailed it back to base before completing his mission. 

He talked to Johann on and off most days, happy to hear his voice while he was alone out here in this strange desert. It had been a really long time since Avi had spoken to someone over a stone of farspeech like a teenager, but that’s certainly how he felt right now. Hearing Johann’s voice, hearing him complain about the Reclaimers and talk about his newest composition, it was enough to put a huge smile on Avi’s face as he wrestled with a piece of machinery in the heat. 

“Are you okay with that?” Johann asked when Avi had told him he wasn’t going to make it to Boyland’s funeral. 

“I wasn’t especially close to him,” Avi replied. “And he died trying to stop the misuse of an artifact. I’m working to do the same thing. It sucks, but at least I’m doing something he believed in.”

“I guess you’re right.”

“You knew him much better than I did. How are you holding up?” Avi asked, pausing in his motions of screwing a component into place. 

“I’m okay right now. I know I’ll be much worse when we feed his information to the Voidfish.” 

“I know how much that bothers you,” Avi said. “If you ever need to talk about it, I’m here for you, okay?”

The stone of farspeech made a buzzing noise as Johann breathed over it. “Thanks, Avi.” 

Avi felt like this project was taking forever, but he was making progress, and after two and a half weeks of camping in the Woven Gulch, the cannon was ready. Aware that Boyland’s funeral was coming to a close, but under strict orders to let the Director know as soon as the cannon was done, Avi contacted her. 

Twenty minutes later, a sphere hit the sand in front of him, exactly where it needed to be. Angus was a child after his job.

Avi didn’t comment on the Reclaimers’ reduced clothing. He honestly hadn’t _ wanted _to see Merle’s hoary knees, but life had a way of keeping Avi on his toes, and the Reclaimers were one of its main vessels. 

To say that he was relieved when his cannon successfully broke through the bubble was an understatement, and he spent a long time after the Reclaimers had disappeared feeling proud of himself as he kicked a few pebbles around and wondered what they were facing inside. 

He was startled roughly from his thoughts by the thundering sound of a mining cart plunging through the side of the bubble and just missing him as it cartwheeled over the ground and threw Taako, Magnus, and Merle onto the red clay. 

“You guys scared the shit—”

There was another horrible noise, and Magnus grabbed the back of Avi’s uniform and dragged him down just as a giant monster of a creature soared right over their heads and into the red clay. The small purple worms were in fact babies, and the four of them watched in shock as a somewhat unsettling reunion took place. 

By the time Avi climbed out of a transportation sphere and onto the moonbase, he was exhausted down to his bones. He may not have done any fighting down there, but he hadn’t slept in his bed in forever, and the sun had really done a number on him. 

While the Reclaimers were waylaid by the Director so they could destroy the relic, Avi stumbled his way across the quad and towards the living domes. 

“Avi!” 

Avi turned just in time to get crushed in a hug.

“Oof!” The fabric under his fingers was colorful. “Johann?”

“It’s so good to see you,” Johann mumbled. His face was buried in Avi’s shoulder, and his arms were tight around him. 

“I’ve missed you too,” Avi said with a smile in his voice. 

Johann pulled back, and his eyes danced across Avi’s face. “You got sunburn.” 

Avi touched his cheekbone. “Did I?”

“It’s not too bad, but you are a little pink,” Johann said with a grin. 

“That sun was brutal. I’m surprised I’m not a lobster, honestly.” He felt the ground dragging at his shoulders. “Listen, I’m totally exhausted and will probably fall asleep as soon as I lie down, but you could join me. If you want.” 

“I do want,” Johann responded. “That. I do want that, yes.” 

Avi smiled and kissed Johann on the cheek. “I should probably take a shower. Grab what you want to sleep in and join me in my room?”

“Okay.”

The shower felt heavenly, and by the time Avi was pulling on his sleep pants and a t-shirt, he was having trouble keeping his eyes open. A knock sounded at the door just as he was stepping out of the bathroom. He shuffled to the door and smiled when he saw Johann looking nervous on the other side. 

“Come on in.” 

Johann had a funny expression on his face as he stared at Avi, and just as Avi was going to ask what it was about, Johann said. “I’ve never seen your hair down before.” 

Avi had washed it and left it to air dry, and he hadn’t thought much about it at all until this moment, with Johann’s eyes on him like he was something special. “It gets in the way, most of the time,” Avi said with a shrug. 

“It’s nice. Well, your hair is always nice, but this is different.” 

Avi laughed. “Thank you, Johann. Now get your pajamas on and come to bed with me, and then maybe you can _ touch _my hair.”

Johann gave him one last long look before taking his small bundle into the bathroom. 

Avi was incredibly grateful for the upgraded quarters. He lived by himself and had a double-sized bed, and even though the room was tiny, it was much better than bunking. Right now, it meant he could share a bed with Johann without worrying about a roommate or about having enough space in his bed. 

He climbed under the covers on the right side and closed his eyes. He was beginning to drift off when the lights clicked off, and he felt the other side of the bed dip. He opened his eyes and watched as Johann settled on his side facing him. 

Avi smiled. “Hello there.”

Johann reached forward, and his hand was soft on the side of Avi’s face as it pushed backwards into his hair. Avi sighed as Johann ran gentle fingers through it. 

Avi slid his foot forward, found where Johann’s legs were resting, and slipped it between his ankles. He felt Johann shift to accommodate him, and then he was falling deeply asleep. 

Avi woke up to warm light filtering through the window and onto his pillow. As awareness slowly came to him, Avi realized that the warmth he was feeling was not from just the sunlight, but also from the warm body pressed against him. Sometime in the night, Johann had moved forward and tucked himself against Avi’s chest. Avi’s chin was resting on dark curls, and in his sleep, he had wrapped his arms firmly around Johann’s back. 

Avi was content to lie here the rest of the day, but his bladder was making itself known, and with great regret, he extracted himself as gingerly as possible. Johann snuffled and readjusted, but he stayed asleep as Avi hurried away to the bathroom. 

Before leaving the bathroom, Avi glanced in the mirror. He was feeling well-rested from his heavy sleep, and some of his gauntness from the night before had faded, but Johann had been right about the sunburn, and his hair was a mess from sleeping on it. He finger-combed it to the best of his ability, splashed some water on his face, and walked back out into the room. As soon as the bathroom door opened, Johann sat up in bed, and his gaze found Avi. 

Avi smiled at him and settled back under the covers. “Good morning. Sorry if I woke you.”

Johann looked down at him. “I thought for a moment you might have…”

Avi frowned. “You thought I’d ditch you? In my own bed after I invited you to sleep here?”

“I guess it wasn’t a reasonable fear.” 

“I would have stayed snuggling, but I had to pee. All’s not lost. Come here.”

Johann’s eyes softened and he laid down again, settling snuggly against Avi. Avi brought his arm up to curl around Johann’s shoulders. 

“Do elves run hot or something? You’re really warm.”

“I don’t think so. Maybe you’re cold,” Johann countered. 

“I’m not complaining.” Avi leaned forward just slightly and placed a kiss on Johann’s ear. 

Johann turned his head, and when Avi leaned in again, it was for a slow, thorough kiss. 

They kissed lazily for a little while, until Johann shifted more firmly on top of Avi, and then the kiss deepened, sparking heat deep in Avi’s stomach. 

Avi slid his hand under the hem of Johann’s sleep shirt and onto the warm skin of his lower back. He felt Johann’s hips shift, and they both gasped. 

Johann broke the kiss and lifted up onto his elbows to look down at Avi. “It’s been a long time,” Johann said with a furrow in his brow. “Like, I don’t get to this point with people very often. So.”

Avi ran his hand up and down Johann’s back slowly. “It’s been a little while for me too. As long as you want this, I want this. We’ll figure it out together.” 

Johann closed his eyes for a moment and let out a shaky breath. “Where did you even come from?”

“Brandybuck.”

Johann rolled his eyes and opened his mouth to most likely say something smart, but Avi took hold of his waist and rolled them so Johann was looking up at him from the pillows. His facial expression smoothed into something full of heat. 

At first, Johann was hesitant and not quite sure of himself, but soon he was too caught up in the sensations of their skin sliding to worry, and oh how Avi loved that little furrow between his brows and the way his mouth opened when Avi angled his hips just right. His hands couldn’t decide if they wanted to tangle in Avi’s hair or grip his arms, and Avi liked the way that overwhelmed indecision looked on him. Avi tucked a hand beneath Johann’s thigh and kissed him, chasing the sounds he was making, the sounds Avi was pulling from him. 

Here, there was no Bureau of Balance, no artifacts or Voidfish. There was only this nonexistent space between them and the sound of their breathing, mingled. 

Afterward, when their sweat was cooling and their breathing was slowing, Johann let their noses brush gently. “Would it be, like, really weird if I wrote a song about this?”

Avi laughed joyfully and kissed him. “No. Not weird at all.”

Over the next few weeks, there was something tense in the air of the base. Avi wasn’t quite sure what it was, but everyone was on edge, and that put Avi on edge in turn. Even the Reclaimers were more solemn than they usually were, worked to the bone by the extensive training routine the Director was putting them through. Avi didn’t envy whatever was in store for them.

“The Voidfish is getting more agitated,” Johann said as they walked across the quad together. “I don’t know what happened, but it’s singing its song more often, and it’s very slow to accept any new compositions I give it.”

“It feels like something big is going to happen, doesn’t it?” Avi said. “Something’s gotta give.”

“Whatever it is, I sure hope it’s above my paygrade.”

Avi laughed. “Honestly, everything that happens around here is above our paygrade.”

“Too bad we have to deal with like half of it.” 

Five days later, two guards went missing. Avi didn’t know them well, but the thought that there was someone on base prepared to harm coworkers in order to gain access to the cells was terrifying. The only person in BoB custody right now was Robbie and wasn’t that a huge, horrifying mystery.

Johann didn’t take well to the knowledge that guards had gone missing, and he spent that night with his arms wrapped tightly around Avi and his face pressed into Avi’s chest.

“I’m not going anywhere, Johann, I promise,” he said, rubbing small circles in Johann’s back.

“You’re just dumb enough to get yourself kidnapped,” Johann replied. “Don’t pretend you’re not. Someone would try to make you work a cannon for them, you’d get all weird about it, and they’d hurt you.”

“How does this sound: if something like that happens, I will do my very best to keep myself safe, as long as I’m sure I’m not putting anyone else in danger.”

Johann pulled back enough to look him in the eye. “I’m still fucking terrified, but thank you.”

Avi kissed him and felt Johann’s hands tighten on his back. “It’s been a rude awakening, realizing that even being stationed up here on the base isn’t enough to keep us safe. I think we’re all starting to realize that the job we signed up for is as dangerous as the Director warned us it would be.”

“I didn’t count on finding someone up here to worry about,” Johann said, settling back against Avi’s chest. “It makes the whole thing a lot more stressful.”

Avi pressed his nose into dark curls and agreed. 

When the Reclaimers were sent off to the Felicity Wilds, the mood on the base dipped even lower. Avi had never felt everyone this tense before, and it was putting him in a terrible mood. Avi threw himself into his job in an effort to stave off some of the anxiety, and Avi assumed Johann was doing the same since he hadn’t seen him in a while. It was as if they all knew something terrible was going to come of this trip and were bracing themselves for it. 

It was nearly two days later when Avi saw Merle’s signal pop up on the display, and he felt a rush of relief as he sent a sphere to Merle’s location. Maybe they would all come back okay. Maybe this horrible feeling had been for nothing.

When the sphere opened and only Merle and Taako stepped out, Avi felt a buzzing in his ears. When they confirmed that Magnus hadn’t made it, Avi could do nothing more than stare in shock. Magnus gone? He was the member of the trio that Avi had thought permanent and steadfast.

While Killian and Carey reacted to the news, Avi sat down next to the transportation sphere and started polishing it with mechanical motions. He felt disconnected. Magnus, with his big heart and booming spirit, gone. 

Avi loitered in the cannon bay for a while after everyone else had left, thinking about the last conversation he had with Magnus before they left for their mission. Magnus had been nervous and uncomfortable in a way he had never been before any other mission, and his companions hadn’t shared his weird nerves. The pain of Magnus’ death was too near to Avi for him to think too hard about that, but he knew it would bother him later. 

Avi was distracted, but not distracted enough to miss the way the air in the room shifted. He picked up a wrench and turned to face the empty cannon bay. He wasn’t alone in here, despite what his eyes were telling him. 

Something slashed across his face, tearing the skin on his cheekbone in a fiery line of pain. Avi swung the wrench and it connected with the empty air with a sickening thud. He kept swinging, and whatever was attacking him got a few hits in, but he was able to mostly ward them off before he threw himself into a sphere and closed the hatch. Invisible claws scratched on the glass, but there wasn’t much that would get through the glass of a transportation sphere. 

Avi’s heart was beating wildly in his chest, and his breathing was loud in the quiet space. He touched his cheekbone, and his fingers came away bloody. Were these invisible creatures all over the base? He listened carefully, and when muffled yelling leaked into the sphere, his heart dropped. His friends could be in danger. _ Johann _could be in danger. 

He gripped the wrench in his hand, wishing for an ax or sword, and released the hatch on the sphere. As soon as it was open, he started swinging, swallowing back the lurch of fear that came every time it connected with something he couldn’t see. He made it out of the cannon bay with a few more scratches but nothing major and was met with a scene of complete chaos. _ Everyone _was fighting, and because their foe was invisible, it was haphazard and desperate. Avi had taken only three steps outside when someone burst out of the Fantasy Costco. 

He turned, and his mind went blank for a few long moments. _ Magnus. _

“Avi!” Magnus shouted, hefting a huge sword as he barreled towards the fight. “Go to the Voidfish chambers. _ Hurry _.” 

Avi didn’t need to be told twice. His heart drifted up into his throat, and his limbs were cold with fear as he sprinted towards the elevator. Questions about where Magnus had come from were replaced with numbing fear and a cold realization that whatever he found at the end of this elevator would not be good. 

There was broken glass everywhere, standing water from the tank coated the floor an inch deep across the entire room, and the Voidfish was laying on the ground among it. It was still glowing, but it looked battered and weak. Avi followed the path of one of its tendrils where it was curled around a familiar ankle. 

A rough gasp escaped Avi’s mouth. Johann was crumpled on the floor, his face a mess of cuts, and there was dark blood soaking his shirt in a mottled pattern. Avi dropped to his knees beside him with a quiet splash of water and immediately reached to his neck to check for a pulse. _ God, let there be a pulse, _Avi thought with growing desperation. 

It was there, weak and slow, but there. 

Avi couldn’t even tell where Johann’s wounds were. Those things had torn at him, and if Avi didn’t do something about it soon, Johann would bleed out right here on the floor. What he needed was a strong healing potion. He needed a cleric. He needed—Avi could feel his hands shaking, and his vision was blurring as panic began to set in. 

“Avi?” 

Johann’s eyes were open, just barely, fixed on Avi. His voice was weak, and there was blood trailing from his open mouth. 

Avi cradled Johann’s neck, the one place where there seemed to be no wounds. “Johann. I’m here.” His voice was thin and choked. 

Johann coughed and groaned, low in the back of his throat. “There’s--in my desk. Locked drawer.” Avi watched as Johann fumbled at the side of his pants and he quickly pushed Johann’s hand away to reach into his pocket and pull out the key there. 

He stood and moved to the desk, which was a scattered mess of papers and leaned over to the small locked drawer on the left side. It clicked open with a turn of the key, and inside was a handful of scrolls, a shiny harmonica, and three vials. Two of the vials were empty, but a third glowed faintly in the dim light. He pulled it out and hurried back to Johann’s side. 

“Is this a healing potion?” 

Johann shook his head. “Not that. The harmonica.” 

Avi frowned, but he ran back to the desk, grabbed the harmonica, and crouched by Johann again. 

“I can’t.” Johann frowned and swallowed heavily. “Can you hold it to my mouth?” 

It was then that Avi realized what Johann was trying to do. He lifted the harmonica to Johann’s mouth, and with his other hand, he helped Johann raise his own blood-soaked hand to the harmonica. 

Johann played four melodic notes, pulled from him with great effort, and Avi could feel the magic stirring the air. With tears in his eyes and his heart beating madly in his chest, Avi watched as light danced across Johann’s skin, and where his wounds were visible, Avi could see the skin knitting together. 

Avi could feel his own wounds knitting as well, and when the spell finished, his arms were no longer stinging, and his face was no longer tight from the wound on his cheek.

Johann let the harmonica drop with a heavy groan. “Fuck. That was terrible.”

As soon as Avi was sure he was okay, he swept him up into a tight hug. 

“You scared the shit out of me, Johann.” He was crying now, his chest shaking with the force of it. 

Johann clung to him. “You saved me. I was sure this was it, but you swept in like my fucking guardian angel.” 

Avi tightened his arms around Johann. 

The sound of running feet reached their ears, and they both pulled back to see Magnus thundering into the room with his sword drawn. Over his shoulder, Avi could swear there was nothing but a weird blur, and it was hurting his eyes to try to look at it. 

Magnus saw them and smiled. “Johann, thank god you’re okay.” He turned back to the Voidfish. “Oh, Fisher…”

That was when Johann looked around Avi’s shoulder to see the Voidfish. Avi could feel him tense. 

“My song. Feed him my song,” Johann said.

Magnus turned to the desk, and it looked like that weird blur was pulling him along. He picked up a piece of parchment from the desk and moved over to the Voidfish. 

“Here you go, buddy.” 

Something was different, this time. When the Voidfish took the composition, instead of absorbing it and going dark, it lit up with brilliant light, and suddenly, Avi heard Johann’s violin. 

And around this violin, he saw a marvelous tale of bravery and sacrifice, and a terrible threat that ate planar systems, and seven birds. Avi saw and he _ knew. _

He knew what they had to do, all of them. They had to fight this Hunger. They had to keep their system alive long enough for the seven birds to save them, somehow. 

When the vision cleared, the Voidfish was gone. Magnus was looking distressed, but Johann breathed out a sigh. “The Voidfish is with its kid now. It’s free.” 

Avi refused to let Johann leave his sight, and Johann was not complaining. Avi was not used to seeing Johann use his bardic skills, so watching him pick up his violin and use it to channel an attack spell on a creature that stepped into their path was a bit surreal. They made it to the cannon bay unscathed, and Avi recalibrated a cannon just in time to aim it at the giant wolf Magnus was fighting. 

Avi and Johann both watched as the silver ship soared up into the sky, chasing the flickering storm. 

“Do you think they’ll be able to stop it?” Johann asked.

“Yeah, I think so. If anyone can do it, it’s them.”

And he was right. The group of them remaining on the moonbase were more than enough to fight off the few creatures that landed there, and not too long after the Starblaster had disappeared into the clouds was there a blinding flash. When it was over, the skies cleared and the world grew quiet. The Hunger was gone. 

The first thing Avi did was kiss Johann, and the kiss was full of desperate relief. 

When they pulled back, Johann grabbed his hand and knit their fingers together. “It’s over.” 

“Johann, they all know you now,” Avi said. “The world heard your song and they _ know _you.”

“I was honestly wondering if that was a dream.” He shook his head. “I don’t think I was supposed to survive back there. It felt… final.” 

Avi squeezed Johann’s hand. “You survived, and your music helped encourage everyone to fight and _ win _. You’re part of the reason we’re all here right now.” 

Johann’s eyes were big and dark. “And you’re the reason I’m here to see it.” He smiled. “Avi, I love you.” 

Here on the headquarters of an organization that in the years to come would move from desperately trying to save the world to helping rebuild it, with a bard who would become the world’s most beloved violinist, as the silver ship came down from the clear skies, as people hugged their loved ones and rejoiced in what they had saved, Avi held Johann’s hand and gave him a watery smile. He could feel their future stretching ahead of them, and it was a future of happiness and prosperity. 

“I love you too.” 

**Author's Note:**

> catch up with me on [tumblr](https://discocrowley.tumblr.com)


End file.
